"Philosophy in the Bedroom", the one short story, and "Justine" all feature the same basic ingredients, which is brutal sex acts (featuring a lot of anal sex) followed by harangues about the virtues of Nature. These harangues generally say that men are animals and in countries all over the world throughout time men have been animals, so why not be an animal too? I suppose that's fine so long as you don't aspire to be anything more than an animal, whatever your faith in a higher power may be.

In reading "Justine" by the end I started to laugh at what an idiot she is. You'd think after the third or fourth time she'd figure out not to go with these men she barely knows to a secluded chateau somewhere because they're just going to tie her up and abuse her! Just like you'd think she'd figure out that if someone seems to offer her a wonderful new job there's some horrible catch attached. By the time she does realize this 14 years later it's too late. I suppose that was part of the point that she is so naive and innocent that it's nigh on impossible for her to lose faith. The moral of the story is, kids, don't talk to strangers. And now you know...and knowing's half the battle.

As for the letters included I don't know what the point was because they seemed mostly to be him whining at his wife to bring him more clothes. You'd probably be just as well off buying "Justine" separately because everything in it is repeated in "Philosophy in the Bedroom" or just isn't that important anyway.

Still, it was an interesting trip into the dark side. ( )

Philosophy in the Bedroom: Incredible that the most frank, most shocking exploration of sex and sexuality that I've ever read was written in the 18th century. ( )

I have given this book a four star, but I really do not know where to classify it.On the one hand, it is a treatise on negation, on proving how God does not exist, and that all that counts, is your own pleasure. It also is an indictment on a society where the upper class people seem to do exactly what they want, without any care about the consequences for others.

On the other hand, it gives an extremely good insight into a mind that was probably unhinged by the prisons and the treatment that he was meted out by the powers that be.

The writing style is turgid, and can be heavy. You need to wade through de Sade's philosophy, and his descriptions of sick minds, and extreme sadism. It is a book that is mentally exhausting, and definitely not for the faint hearted. ( )

I loved this book. Twisted and sick. ( )

I understand that if you are young and in jail, as was Sade, you can dream all kinds of sexual fantasies. The dreams of the marquis de Sade belong to that category. However these dreams are not edited: this is not literature, it is repetitive and frankly not exciting at all for a normal person. Out of jail, Sade had a disorderly life, attacking his young servants and being, even for a 18th century nobleman,- at that time, noble people could get away with a lot of sins- absolutely repugnant. We remember Sade because he gave his name to a type of disorder, but he is forgettable as a character and as an author. It is hard to believe that the monster was born in the south of France in the beautiful and charming city of Lacoste. The castle belongs now to Pierre Cardin estate and half the town is an art school. ( )